MarketShare Sold for $450 Million

Marketing attribution company MarketShare of Westwood has been acquired by Neustar Inc. for $450 million.

The acquisition was spurred by the greater ability of the combined companies to share and integrate advertising data and services, said co-founder and co-Chief Executive Jon Vein.

Using a statistical method called regression analysis, MarketShare’s cloud-based software programs correlate sales to money spent on promotions like television ads, online banners, events and social media posts. The company’s clients include MasterCard, Turner Broadcasting System Inc. and Intel Corp.

While MarketShare is focused on finding larger advertising patterns, Neustar of Sterling, Va. is focused on providing granular data points about consumers. The company’s platform helps marketers use that information to target consumers with advertisements.

Acquisition talks came after the two companies began sharing data this summer, said Vein.

“We kept looking at each other and seeing the very complimentary and unique assets that the two companies had,” he said. “They were the bigger fish and they approached us to acquire us. We were thrilled.”

MarketShare’s revenue has grown at a compounded annual growth rate of 38 percent from 2011 to 2014, the company said. The company generated $57 million in revenue for the 12 months ended Sept. 30. Founded in 2005, Marketshare has raised more than $84 million in funding.

Despite the sale, Vein said he and co-founder Wes Nichols, who serves as co-chief executive, planned to continue working for Neustar for several years.

“Wes Nichols and I are investing a significant amount of consideration into Neustar,” he said. “It would be somewhat disingenuous to say I’m not satisfied about the monetary side of this, but I’m thrilled to be part of something that will continue to grow.”